Our Church

The presence of the Coptic Orthodox congregation in the area of Rochester, NY started in the late sixties and early seventies as a result of some families immigrating to the United States to reside and work.

In the late 1960's, these families traveled to St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church in Toronto to attend the Divine Liturgy, as it was the closest Coptic Orthodox Church to Rochester at the time (a three and a half hour driving distance). On October 10, 1969, Father Marcos Elias Marcos, the rst Coptic Orthodox priest to serve in North America and the priest of St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church in Toronto, prayed the rst Liturgy in Rochester. The Divine Liturgy was celebrated once or twice a year until 1977 when Father Marcos agreed to extend his service to once a month. In 1981, Father Ibrahim Ateya (at the time, the priest of our church in Kitchener and Waterloo, Canada) joined the ongoing service in Rochester, once a month. Through alternating between the two priests, Rochester enjoyed their services once every two weeks. In 1986, the building committee was able to nd over two acres of land located in the town of Henrietta (a suburb of the city of Rochester). Knowing that it would be used for a church, the owner agreed to sell for half the price.

On June 29, 1987, the building committee was granted the nal approval from the government boards and ocials.

On July 10 of the same year, Father Mina Wahba Youssef arrived to Rochester, to become the rst permanent priest for St. Mark Church. Father Ibrahim Ateya was present at his reception ceremony.

His Grace Bishop Reweis blessed and consecrated this land on the 28th of September 1987. Im- mediately after, the preparation of the nal building plans started. Breaking grounds and the commencement of the new building started in the spring of 1988. The corner stone ceremony was led and blessed by His Grace Bishop Reweis on September 2, 1988. The grand opening and the rst service in the newly-built church were conducted on Christmas Eve, January 6, 1989.

St. Mark Church was consecrated by H.H. Pope Shenouda III, with some other bishops accompa- nying him, on September 6, 1989.

Father Mina Wahba Youssef is now serving our church in San Diego, California, where he has been serving since October 15, 1995.

Shortly thereafter, Father Mina Riwes arrived to Rochester as the new priest on December 25, 1995. After serving in Rochester for two and a half years, he departed to the Lord on July 21, 1997. May the Lord repose his soul.

On August 7, 1998, Father Shenouda Maher Ishak came to Rochester as its new priest. During his service, there was an expansion of the Church building that included an enlargement of the main Church, a new baptismal font for adults, rooms for Sunday School and other activities, as well as a new Church for the Archangel Michael and St. Shenouda the Archimandrite in the basement. Father Shenouda Maher now serves the Coptic Monastery of St. Shenouda and the church of Sts. Peter and Paul, both located in Rochester, NY.

On June 17, 2013, Father David Naguib was ordained for St. Mark Church in Rochester. The congregation celebrated his arrival on August 3, 2013, in the presence of several priests from Canada and the North Eastern United States, during Vespers followed by a reception.

St. Mark Church became an ocial member of the newly-developed diocese of New York and New England under the leadership of His Grace Bishop David on November 14, 2013. The diocese welcomed Bishop David as its chosen shepard during an enthronement service on December 7, 2013 held in the Coptic Orthodox Church of St. Abraam in Woodbury, Long Island.